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8-year-old girl’s mutilated body found in Bihar, 12 detained
Munger superintendent of police (SP) Jagunath Jala Reddy said the victim’s body has been sent for postmortem examination to ascertain if she was raped
A day after the mutilated body of an eight-year-old girl was recovered on the bank of the river Ganga in Munger district of Bihar, police on Friday detained 12 people for questioning after forming a special investigation team (SIT) to probe the case. Police said they are yet to get confirmation if the minor was raped.
Munger Sadar sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Nandji Prasad, who is heading the SIT, said that one eye of the girl had been gouged out.
Munger superintendent of police (SP) Jagunath Jala Reddy said the victim’s body has been sent for postmortem examination to ascertain if she was raped, adding that the report was awaited. The SP said that he has requested the doctors to submit the report at the earliest.
“Some people have been taken into custody for questioning. We cannot reveal their identity now,” he added.
The girl’s uncle on Friday said, “She had bleeding marks on her private parts. The criminals also gouged her right eye and damaged her left eye. Her nails had blood clotting marks.” He added her hands and feet were fractured.
The gruesome murder of the minor, a Class 3 student at a government school, has once again brought spotlight on crime against women in Bihar. The Bihar Police headquarters officials, quoting NCRB’s 2019 data, said Bihar ranks 31 in rape cases and 28th in crime against women.
“Munger incident was barbaric and reflected how the crime against women especially minor girls was on the rise in Bihar. The case should be thoroughly probed. In recent few years, there has been a disconcerting trend of rape victims getting killed as the culprits do not want to leave any evidence. The crime cases in the state are alarming,” said Nivedita Jha, a women’s rights activist.
According to the police, the girl went missing after she along with her father had gone for fishing on Wednesday afternoon. Her father lodged a missing person’s report the same night.
According to the complaint, the girl and her father had gone for fishing in the Ganga. However, the girl left to return home alone around 4pm, but never reached. Her body was found around 5am on Thursday at a secluded spot, barely 300 metres from her house, police said.
The SP said a case was lodged in this connection under sections 302 (murder), 363 (kidnapping) of the Indian Penal Code adding that sections under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act will also be invoked on the basis of the father’s complaint.
